The next reader was with me through the whole path
of this book.
But before I introduce him, I want
to formally thank the Poetry Center for having
us here, and U of A press for all their phenomenal work
over the years, and Patti Hartmann who worked with me
to bring this book into being.
Can you guys give Patti an applause?
She's here in the audience.
[APPLAUSE]
Thank you, Patti, for believing in this.
And Kristen Buckles, as well, took over and adopted the book.
Is she here?
Yes, can you guys give her a round of applause, please?
[APPLAUSE]
And Nancy, and Holly, and Abby, and other people at the press,
all doing wonderful things.
Thank you for bringing this beautiful book
into its place in the world, and for hosting us here, as well.
I really appreciate the Poetry Center's generosity
in allowing us to use this space.
Ofelia was a hero of mine when I first
started working to publish, and to do that kind of work
in the world, as was Leslie Marmon Silko, and Paula Gunn
Allen.
And those were three women who were out
doing this a long time.
And we really hoped Ofelia could be here.
I did work with her a bit on the weekend,
and she had to go to a conference in California,
so she's not here.
But I hope you all get to hear her read, if you have not.
Simon Ortiz also had to do another conference
at the last moment, so Simon won't be here either.
And we hoped to bring Steven Yazzie out.
Steven did the beautiful cover for the book.
It's a painting of his, called New Territories.
He's a Diné artist, and he lives in Phoenix.
So if you don't know his work, please look it up
on the internet, because he does stunning paintings.
He's really exceptional as an artist.
I also wanted to take time to think Country Inn and Suites.
They sponsored writers here by giving us lodging.
So those of us that came in from out of town,
they put us up for free.
They gave us complimentary suites over there,
so keep them in mind.
If you have friends coming to Tucson, send them over there.
They're really great, and they do have a literary history.
They give out free books to readers
that come through the hotel.
You can return them to any other Country Inn and Suites.
So it's kind of interesting that they have a literary link.
They also sponsor the reading series
that I ran for the University of Nebraska.
So we're really happy that they assisted us in this.